Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has said he wants Nemanja Vidic,
who along with Anderson has not travelled to Milan for their Champions
League meeting, to stay at Old Trafford, despite rumours linking the Serb
with a move to Real Madrid.

Out of action: Nemanja Vidic has not featured for Manchester United in any of their last nine matchesPhoto: GETTY IMAGES

Vidic, who pulled out of United’s FA Cup defeat at home to Leeds on Jan 3 after complaining of an injury in the pre-match warm-up, will miss his 10th successive game tonight after being sidelined since that third-round exit.

Both AC Milan and Real Madrid are keen to sign the 28 year-old in the summer and, although Ferguson insists he wants to keep the player, he appeared frustrated when discussing Vidic’s reluctance to return to action.

Ferguson said: “It’s a difficult one because he feels he needs a lot of training. He has been training for the last 10 days and he doesn’t feel he can take part in games.

“That’s something we need to be patient with and we are at the moment. I can’t answer the question [on his future]. It’s pure speculation. You get it and deal with it because it has happened with many of our players.

“But of course we want him to stay. He’s a great player, one of the best centre-backs in the world.”